Some
basic and powerful definitions related to occupational health and
safety are the following:

Health

Related
to the protection of the bodies and minds of people from illness
resulting from the materials, processes or procedures used in the
workplace.

Safety

Related to the
protection of people from physical injury. The borderline between
health and safety is ill-defined and the two words are normally used
together to indicate concern for the physical and mental well-being
of the individual at the place of work.

Welfare

Related
to the provision of facilities to maintain the health and well-being
of individuals at the workplace. Welfare facilities include washing
and sanitation arrangements, the provision of drinking water,
heating, lighting, eating and rest rooms. First aid arrangements are
also considered as welfare facilities.

Occupational or
work-related ill-health

Is concerned with those
illnesses or physical and mental disorders that are either caused or
triggered by workplace activities. Such conditions may be induced by
the particular work activity of the individual or by activities of
others in the workplace. The time interval between exposure and the
onset of the illness may be short or long.

Environmental
protection

Related
to the arrangements to cover those activities in the workplace which
affect the environment and, possibly, the health and safety of
employees and others.

Accident

Defined
as any unplanned event that results in injury or ill health of
people, or damage or loss to property, plant, materials or the
environment or a loss of a business opportunity.

Near miss

Is any incident that
could have resulted in an accident.

Dangerous occurrence

It’s
a near miss which could have led to serious injury or loss of life.

Hazard and risk

A hazard is the
potential of a substance, activity or process to cause harm. Hazards
take many forms including, for example, chemicals, electricity and
working from a ladder.

A
risk is the likelihood of a substance, activity or process to cause
harm. A risk can be reduced and the hazard controlled by good
management.

The difference
between hazard and risk

It
is very important to distinguish between a hazard and a risk – the
two terms are often confused and activities such as construction work
are called high risk when they are high hazard. Although the hazard
will continue to be high, the risks will be reduced when controls are
implemented.

The residual risk

The level of risk
remaining when controls have been adopted is known as the residual
risk. There should only be high residual risk where there is poor
health and safety management and inadequate control measures.

3
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